Our Cabin Life Checklist for Spring

Living the modern cabin life year-round is our dream come true. Cabin living comes with its own set of unique home maintenance requirements. Spring cleaning is not the same as living in the suburbs.

Seasonal Chores

One of my favorite things about living in a cabin is that we have to be in the present. It’s intentional living at it’s finest. We are always watching the weather, gauging the amount of firewood we have, or are maintenancing our property for wildfire prevention.

In the early Spring we gear up for another season of outdoor living and cabin maintenance. My friend Megan recently wrote an article that was featured in the April/May edition of Log Home living. She does a beautiful job explaining some of the unique challenges with living the cabin life full-time. 

Springtime Chores

Our modern cabin is about 3,000 sq ft. With four full-sized humans living here by the end of March spring fever is REAL! So as soon as we get our first break in the weather, we dust off our deck and head outside. There is nothing like the smell of sunny pine tree and it’s a welcoming aroma after the long winter.

Spring cleaning at a cabin looks a little different than you might think. Like many cabin folk, much of our living time is spent outside. It’s our desire to create a peaceful, outdoor haven, and to live in it as much as we can. Furthermore, the harsh winters, at our elevation, can really do a number on the property which creates revolving maintenance year after year.

Here is a general list of the chores we find ourselves working on each spring.

1. We are always chopping firewood so the wood has time to dry by next fall. Our cabin is heated by a boiler but our wood burning fireplace is put through its paces each year. It’s our back up heat source in case the power goes out for any length of time (and it has!)
2. It’s important to walk our property and check for any fence damage that may need repaired. We live on an acre but have some predatory wildlife (mountain lions, bears, and coyotes) that could be aggressive toward our pets if given the opportunity.
3. Woodpecker damage! These small but mighty birds love to bore holes in the warm cedar of our cabin during mating season. So, we are always ready to deter them and repair the damage they create.
4. I love veggie garden prep! Every spring I love planning and prepping a small garden.
5. Winterize the snow blower and pull out the rakes and brooms, it’s time to switch seasons. With the spring season comes the wind! And that means the pine needles fall like rain. Our cabin sits in the middle of our completely treed acre so we battle lots and lots of pine needles.

Wildfire Prevention

Wildfires are a very real risk where we live. To protect our small slice of forest and cabin we follow these steps each year in the spring and summer to keep wildfire risk low.

1. We rake pine duff (pine needles) back at least 10 ft from the edge of our deck or cabin. A pitch fork is an amazing tool for this job.
2. Each spring and summer we have “The great pinecone pick up” with the wheel-barrel. Pine cones are insanely great fire starter/kindling so we pick them up a few times a year as another form of prevention.
3. We trim any low hanging dead or live branches from the pines and aspens. Inevitably dead branches fall to the ground too, so we pick those up all year as well.

The Never-Ending Task

With any cabin, there is likely going to be a fair amount of exterior and interior maintenance. An element of exterior work for many cabin owners is deck maintenance. For us it’s an ongoing task.

We have over 1000 sq ft of wood decking. We are maintaining it ourselves. Inevitably each year, we have a section that needs to be stripped, sanded and sealed somehow. As time and finances allow, we plan to replace sections of the deck with composite decking.

The Busy Season Ahead

The pace of living in a cabin is strongly dictated by the seasons. I always eagerly look forward to the cold winter months and the physical rest it brings. Finally, spring arrives and the clock starts over. We race to get all the projects done before the first autumn snowfall. But for now, I’ll live in the moment and soak up as much sunny pine tree as I can. 

For you and your intentional home,